Sweet Home Chicago
On September 27, Team MSC took to the streets of beautiful Chicago for the running of the 18th Annual Chicago Half Marathon & 5k! Team MSC brought out our largest team ever, 46 runners came out to race, some running the half, others running/walking the 5k. Even though other teams had much larger groups present, Team MSC had some rock stars out on the course! A big congrats to Steve Bland, who ran the half marathon in 1:20 which earned him an 11th overall finish out of 8,188 runners, winning his age group! Congrats to Phil Devol who ran the half in 1:45 and won his age group. Many other runners placed in their respective age groups, and best news, no injuries to report!
Not only did Team MSC show up in a BIG way this year in Chicago, Harvest Christian Academy under the leadership of David Lockwood showed up too! Over 80 kid volunteers bused down from the suburbs from HCA to volunteer for the race. This group of students did an outstanding job! Not only did they catch a bus at 4am they continued to work gear check, aid stations and the finish line for all 12,000 runners. A big thank you to all volunteers who worked the race, maintained Team MSC’s tent and made the morning run smoothly!
Why did we all come together as a team? Why did so many people dedicate this morning to charity? Why did runners train for months to conquer their first half marathon? To raise funding for Mitchell Swaback Projects and the Harvest Compassion Center! This is our largest fundraiser of the year and our team didn’t disappoint! TOTAL RAISED….. Drum roll please…. $98,000.00! What a blessing each and every dollar is! Gifts large and small came in one by one, to make an impact in the lives of others, all while spreading the love of the Lord.
The sweetest donation may have been from a 10-year-old girl, who donated all of her earnings from hosting a lemonade stand. She sent in her $10.00 donation with a note attached, “I have raised this money by donations and lemonade stands. Have Fun and God Bless.” Proving once again every single penny counts and NO donation is too small! “You shall surely give him, and your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him: because that for this thing the Lord your God shall bless you in all your works and in all that you put your hand to,” Deuteronomy 15:10.
Once again congrats to all Team MSC runners, walkers, supporters and volunteers! Thank you for SHOWING UP to make a difference in the lives of others!
Check out the photos! We captured some great shots of team members finishing!!!